An Office Worker's guide to Improving Posture

Sometimes, working in a busy office environment can mean we forget about our health and wellbeing, particularly when it comes to our posture. While it might not seem like much of a big deal, failing to look after your back can be detrimental to your overall health. Work-related back pain is one of the most common health conditions across Great Britain and the rest of Europe. So what can be done to protect our posture? In this blog, we’ve put together some useful tips to help you look after your back health at the office. Make sure you have a supportive chair A supportive chair is essential to improving and maintaining good posture at work. Since it’s likely you sit down for a large portion of your day, having a suitable seat is an absolute must if you want to look after your health and wellbeing. Ideally, your chair should be adjustable in terms of height and tilt position, as well as provide sufficient lumbar support. Preferably, the backrest should move independently from the seat, allowing you to find the optimum position for sitting. For extra comfort, it also helps if the chair is well padded. When you’re sat in your chair, it’s important to alter its position to suit you. By doing this, you can reduce the strain on your back and cut your chances of developing back pain. If you’re unhappy with your current seating situation, it pays to speak up and bring your concerns to your manager’s attention. They should do what they can to help you correctly adjust your current chair or they may suggest replacing it with a different model. At Furniture At Work™, we offer a broad range of office chairs with a selection of useful features that can help you protect your back health. Learn to sit correctly Aside from making sure you have a supportive chair, it’s important to ensure that you’re sitting in it properly. Being sat down for extended periods of time can’t be helped in most office jobs, but if you’re not careful, sitting incorrectly could be storing up trouble for your back. Slouching or hunching over at your desk might feel like a natural, comfortable position to adopt. However, over time, sitting like this can put an increased amount of strain and pressure on your back muscles and soft tissues. In turn, you may start suffering with back-related pain, and it’s likely your overall posture will begin to worsen. The good news is, learning how to sit correctly isn’t difficult, and it could be that a few, small tweaks significantly improves your health and wellbeing at work. When you’re sat at your desk, your hips should be pushed back into the chair and you should aim to keep your back as straight as possible. Your thighs should be at right angles or slightly sloping downwards, and your feet should be placed firmly on the floor. For extra comfort, you could use a footrest. Finetune your desk setup Did you know that a poorly organised desk can have a huge impact on your wellbeing? The truth is, the way in which your workstation is arranged could be affecting your posture in more ways than you think. So, if you’re keen to keep your back health in tip top condition, you might want to think about fine-tuning your desk setup. Firstly, a small, cramped workstation is a big no-no. it’s important to make sure that your desk is spacious so that you’re able to carry out your day-to-day tasks with ease. It should be also be big enough to accommodate all of your equipment, such as your computer screen, keyboard, mouse and any other essentials, like a telephone and filing tray. When it comes to the arrangement of your desk, it pays to be particular. For example, your computer screen should be placed directly in front of you at about an arm’s length away. It should also be at approximately eye level. If you’re unable to get the position of your screen just right, you could use a monitor stand. Having your screen too low or too high could mean you have to bend your neck uncomfortably by either straining upwards or stooping down to see the display. You should place your keyboard in front of you, leaving a gap of around six inches between the edge of the desk and the device itself. Ideally, you should have enough space to rest your wrists while you’re typing, and your arms should be able to comfortably rest in L-shapes with your elbows by your sides. Positioning your keyboard correctly will mean you aren’t tempted to overstretch yourself. It’s also essential to keep your mouse next to the keyboard so that you can move from one to the other with ease. Keeping your most-used objects close to hand stops you from twisting or straining yourself to reach things. Taking the time to rethink your desk layout could help you maintain a healthy posture and enable you to avoid any potential back problems further down the line. Take regular breaks Even if your job role requires you to tap away at your computer for the majority of the day, it’s absolutely vital that you take time away from your desk every now and again. Sitting in the same position for a long time is bad news for your overall health, not just your back, so frequent, short breaks are a must. This gives your muscles a chance to relax and prevents your back from becoming tense and stiff. Whether you take a short walk to the photocopier, get up to make a cup of tea or go for a leisurely walk on your lunch break, there are a number of things you can do to help loosen up your muscles during your working day. There’s no denying that your wellbeing at work is paramount, and there’s no reason why your job should have an adverse effect on your back health. Taking these tips into consideration should help you improve and maintain good posture while you’re on the clock.

May 5, 2017 | View: 309 | Categories: health and posture